Ann Widdecombe gave her final interview to Christian radio station TWR-UK just 20 minutes before police believe she was murdered, according to newly released audio. The former Conservative minister and Brexit Party MEP was found dead in her Dartmoor home on Thursday morning, with police saying she likely died almost 24 hours earlier. She had been scheduled to appear on Matt Allwright's Channel 5 show on Wednesday, but stopped replying to producers after 12:19pm.
Interview timing aligns with suspected time of death
The interview was conducted between 11:54am and 12:10pm on Wednesday. Devon and Cornwall Police stated on Saturday that the murder is believed to have occurred at around 12:30pm. A portion of the never-broadcast interview was published by Times Radio after permission from Widdecombe's family.
In the clip, Widdecombe discussed the register of MPs' interests and investigations into Reform leader Nigel Farage. She said: 'The register used to be an extremely serious instrument, which meant that you declared anything which might have any impact on the way you vote. That was the intention of it – a good one, you need to know. But it then got to the point where you had to declare all your earnings, regardless of whether they influenced anything.'
Widdecombe joked about Basil Brush fee
She added: 'My standard joke at the time to the then-registrar was, you're expecting me to declare the fee I received for appearing with Basil Brush – is that because you expected it to influence my vote on hunting?' Farage faced two Standards Commissioner investigations over a £5 million 'gift' from a crypto billionaire and support from convicted fraudster George Cottrell. Both probes ended after his resignation as an MP last week, but will restart if he wins the resulting by-election.
Widdecombe supported Farage's 'people versus the establishment' by-election call during the pre-recorded interview. Interviewer James Maidment-Fullard told the Times he informed police about the recording, but they did not request it.
Death treated as terrorism
On Friday, Widdecombe's death was declared an act of terrorism, with counter-terror police taking over the investigation. Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood told MPs the case 'raises questions about the security of those in public life'. She offered Farage a meeting with the chair of RAVEC, the Home Office body responsible for security for public figures, which Farage accepted.
